Cute Road Hazards

Driving in Saskatchewan has it's pros and cons.  For one thing, I have been pleasantly surprised at how much life there is along the road in Saskatchewan.  Usually my hands and attention are required for driving, and so I have not been able to get photos of all the things I have seen.  This includes many deer, a very very large fox, a coyote, and a skunk.  Unfortunately, there is also a lot of roadkill.  The front of my car is a sad composite of the remains on countless large dragonflies (never seen so many in my life), grasshoppers, and little yellow butterflies.  At least I have managed to avoid birds and mammals so far.  However, I have seen the remains of a deer, many many skunks (they must be having a good year to have such number), too many birds, a bunny, gophers, voles, and even a couple of snakes squashed on the road.  Yup.  Snakes.  Not scary Crocodile Dundee Australia snakes, but little snakes.

 

So while driving past a pretty little pond of water, I decided to get a picture of it, since it was so still and calm, reflections of little fenceposts on the water.  When I parked my car and got out, I was surprised at the racket -- this serene little spot was bustling with noise and activity...hundreds and hundreds of happy chattering birds.  I could almost hear the voice of  David Attenborough from BBC's Planet Earth..."But the Prairies are teeeeming with lif-fe!" Click the video below to hear what this surprisingly noisy little watering hole is like.

 



 

On another day, near the same road, I saw 3 antelope in the field.  This stretch of road is long, and has very low levels of traffic, so I decided to pull over to the side and snap a few photos.

 



The interesting thing about these antelope, all cute and fuzzy in their prairie home, is that they aren't actually antelope at all.  I grew up with these "antelope," but apparently that's just what we locals call them, and most antelope species are actually in Africa, and these little guys are actually classified as Pronghorn.  Who knew?

This last photo shows two major road hazards.   Obviously, the pronghorn crossing the road is the first hazard.  The second hazard is the road itself.  Notice the giant pothole that even the surefooted pronghorn could trip in?  The uneven pavement?  The lack of shoulders on the road.  Welcome to rural Saskatchewan, where your tax dollars leave and apparently never return to.  I won't mention the third hazard...me, taking pictures.  Don't worry, the car was pulled over onto the shoulder of the road and me and the Pronghorn(s), whatever the plural may be, all made it safely to our destinations.